The 2018 First Data 500 was a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race held on October 28, 2018, at Martinsville Speedway in Ridgeway, Virginia. Contested over 500 laps on the .526 mile (.847 km) short track (extended from 500 laps), it was the 33rd race of the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season, seventh race of the Playoffs, and first race of the Round of 8.

2018 First Data 500
Race details[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9]
Race 33 of 36 in the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series
Date October 28, 2018 (2018-10-28)
Location Martinsville Speedway in Ridgeway, Virginia
Course Permanent racing facility
.526 mi (.847 km)
Distance 500 laps, 263 mi (423.5 km)
Average speed 75.310 miles per hour (121.200 km/h)
Pole position
Driver Joe Gibbs Racing
Time 19.673
Most laps led
Driver Joey Logano Team Penske
Laps 309
Winner
No. 22 Joey Logano Team Penske
Television in the United States
Network NBCSN
Announcers Rick Allen, Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte and Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Nielsen Ratings 1.3 (Overnight)[10]
Radio in the United States
Radio MRN
Booth Announcers Joe Moore, Jeff Striegle and Rusty Wallace
Turn Announcers Dave Moody (Backstretch)

Report

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Background

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Martinsville Speedway, the track where the race was held.

Martinsville Speedway is an International Speedway Corporation-owned NASCAR stock car racing track located in Henry County, in Ridgeway, Virginia, just to the south of Martinsville. At 0.526 miles (0.847 km) in length, it is the shortest track in the NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series. The track is also one of the first paved oval tracks in NASCAR, being built in 1947 by H. Clay Earles. It is also the only race track that has been on the NASCAR circuit from its beginning in 1948. Along with this, Martinsville is the only NASCAR oval track on the entire NASCAR track circuit to have asphalt surfaces on the straightaways, then concrete to cover the turns.

Entry list

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No. Driver Team Manufacturer
00 Joey Gase (i) StarCom Racing Chevrolet
1 Jamie McMurray Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet
2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford
3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
6 Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Racing Ford
7 Hermie Sadler Premium Motorsports Chevrolet
9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
10 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford
13 Ty Dillon Germain Racing Chevrolet
14 Clint Bowyer Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
15 Ross Chastain (i) Premium Motorsports Chevrolet
17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Roush Fenway Racing Ford
18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
19 Daniel Suárez Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
20 Erik Jones Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
21 Paul Menard Wood Brothers Racing Ford
22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford
23 J. J. Yeley (i) BK Racing Toyota
24 William Byron (R) Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
31 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
32 Matt DiBenedetto Go Fas Racing Ford
34 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford
37 Chris Buescher JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet
38 David Ragan Front Row Motorsports Ford
41 Kurt Busch Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
42 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet
43 Darrell Wallace Jr. (R) Richard Petty Motorsports Chevrolet
47 A. J. Allmendinger JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet
48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
51 Jeb Burton (i) Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet
66 Timmy Hill (i) MBM Motorsports Toyota
72 Cole Whitt TriStar Motorsports Chevrolet
78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing Toyota
88 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
95 Regan Smith Leavine Family Racing Chevrolet
96 D. J. Kennington (i) Gaunt Brothers Racing Toyota
99 Landon Cassill (i) StarCom Racing Chevrolet
Official entry list

Practice

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First practice

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Brad Keselowski was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 19.784 seconds and a speed of 95.714 mph (154.037 km/h).[11]

Pos No. Driver Team Manufacturer Time Speed
1 2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford 19.784 95.714
2 41 Kurt Busch Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 19.798 95.646
3 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 19.809 95.593
Official first practice results

Final practice

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Ryan Newman was the fastest in the final practice session with a time of 19.785 seconds and a speed of 95.709 mph (154.029 km/h).[12]

Pos No. Driver Team Manufacturer Time Speed
1 31 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 19.785 95.709
2 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 19.951 94.913
3 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 19.978 94.784
Official final practice results

Qualifying

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Kyle Busch scored the pole for the race with a time of 19.673 and a speed of 96.254 mph (154.906 km/h).[13]

Qualifying results

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Pos No. Driver Team Manufacturer R1 R2 R3
1 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 19.795 19.711 19.673
2 14 Clint Bowyer Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 19.694 19.716 19.700
3 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 19.738 19.715 19.702
4 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 19.660 19.761 19.706
5 10 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 19.717 19.722 19.713
6 78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing Toyota 19.858 19.751 19.739
7 41 Kurt Busch Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 19.719 19.692 19.692
8 2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford 19.831 19.780 19.770
9 19 Daniel Suárez Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 19.792 19.731 19.786
10 42 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 19.763 19.741 19.806
11 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 19.730 19.802 19.825
12 24 William Byron (R) Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 19.836 19.762 19.877
13 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 19.836 19.822
14 38 David Ragan Front Row Motorsports Ford 19.796 19.796
15 37 Chris Buescher JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 19.795 19.795
16 88 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 19.863 19.842
17 47 A. J. Allmendinger JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 19.756 19.756
18 31 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 19.763 19.763
19 1 Jamie McMurray Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 19.740 19.740
20 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Roush Fenway Racing Ford 19.832 19.832
21 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 19.891 19.891
22 34 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford 19.879 19.879
23 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 19.881 19.881
24 20 Erik Jones Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 19.802 19.802
25 15 Ross Chastain (i) Premium Motorsports Chevrolet 19.898
26 13 Ty Dillon Germain Racing Chevrolet 19.905
27 6 Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Racing Ford 19.913
28 3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 19.916
29 32 Matt DiBenedetto Go Fas Racing Ford 19.918
30 95 Regan Smith Leavine Family Racing Chevrolet 19.941
31 72 Cole Whitt TriStar Motorsports Chevrolet 20.057
32 43 Darrell Wallace Jr. (R) Richard Petty Motorsports Chevrolet 20.062
33 96 D. J. Kennington (i) Gaunt Brothers Racing Toyota 20.162
34 23 J. J. Yeley (i) BK Racing Toyota 20.205
35 00 Joey Gase (i) StarCom Racing Chevrolet 20.342
36 51 Jeb Burton (i) Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet 20.388
37 66 Timmy Hill (i) MBM Motorsports Toyota 20.432
38 7 Hermie Sadler Premium Motorsports Chevrolet 20.472
39 21 Paul Menard Wood Brothers Racing Ford 21.040
40 99 Landon Cassill (i) StarCom Racing Chevrolet 0.000
Official qualifying results

Race

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Joey Logano won the race.

Stage Results

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Stage 1 Laps: 130

Pos No Driver Team Manufacturer Points
1 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 10
2 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 9
3 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 8
4 14 Clint Bowyer Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 7
5 41 Kurt Busch Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 6
6 31 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 5
7 78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing Toyota 4
8 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 3
9 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 2
10 10 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 1
Official stage one results

Stage 2 Laps: 130

Pos No Driver Team Manufacturer Points
1 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 10
2 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 9
3 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 8
4 78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing Toyota 7
5 41 Kurt Busch Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 6
6 31 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 5
7 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 4
8 14 Clint Bowyer Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 3
9 47 A. J. Allmendinger JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 2
10 2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford 1
Official stage two results

Final Stage Results

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Stage 3 Laps: 240

Pos Grid No Driver Team Manufacturer Laps Points
1 11 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 500 59
2 3 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 500 54
3 6 78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Racing Toyota 500 45
4 1 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 500 49
5 8 2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford 500 33
6 7 41 Kurt Busch Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 500 43
7 21 9 Chase Elliott Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 500 34
8 18 31 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 500 39
9 9 19 Daniel Suárez Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 500 28
10 13 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 500 29
11 5 10 Aric Almirola Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 500 27
12 23 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 500 25
13 15 37 Chris Buescher JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 500 24
14 17 47 A. J. Allmendinger JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 500 25
15 26 13 Ty Dillon Germain Racing Chevrolet 500 22
16 19 1 Jamie McMurray Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 500 21
17 16 88 Alex Bowman Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 500 20
18 14 38 David Ragan Front Row Motorsports Ford 500 19
19 20 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Roush Fenway Racing Ford 500 18
20 4 12 Ryan Blaney Team Penske Ford 500 20
21 2 14 Clint Bowyer Stewart-Haas Racing Ford 499 26
22 39 21 Paul Menard Wood Brothers Racing Ford 499 15
23 27 6 Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Racing Ford 499 14
24 31 72 Cole Whitt TriStar Motorsports Chevrolet 498 13
25 22 34 Michael McDowell Front Row Motorsports Ford 497 12
26 24 20 Erik Jones Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 494 11
27 33 96 D. J. Kennington (i) Gaunt Brothers Racing Toyota 493 0
28 30 95 Regan Smith Leavine Family Racing Chevrolet 492 9
29 25 15 Ross Chastain (i) Premium Motorsports Chevrolet 492 0
30 28 3 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 491 7
31 34 23 J. J. Yeley (i) BK Racing Toyota 491 0
32 40 99 Landon Cassill (i) StarCom Racing Chevrolet 490 0
33 36 51 Jeb Burton (i) Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet 489 0
34 32 43 Darrell Wallace Jr. (R) Richard Petty Motorsports Chevrolet 488 3
35 35 00 Joey Gase (i) StarCom Racing Chevrolet 467 0
36 29 32 Matt DiBenedetto Go Fas Racing Ford 451 1
37 10 42 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 393 1
38 37 66 Timmy Hill (i) MBM Motorsports Toyota 368 0
39 12 24 William Byron (R) Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 364 1
40 38 7 Hermie Sadler Premium Motorsports Chevrolet 230 1
Official race results

Race statistics

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  • Lead changes: 6 among different drivers
  • Cautions/Laps: 8 for 68
  • Red flags: 0
  • Time of race: 3 hours, 29 minutes and 32 seconds
  • Average speed: 75.310 miles per hour (121.200 km/h)

Media

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Television

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NBC Sports covered the race on the television side. Rick Allen, 1997 race winner Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte and 2014 race winner Dale Earnhardt Jr. had the call in the booth for the race. Dave Burns, Parker Kligerman, Marty Snider and Kelli Stavast reported from pit lane during the race.

NBCSN
Booth announcers Pit reporters
Lap-by-lap: Rick Allen
Color-commentator: Jeff Burton
Color-commentator: Steve Letarte
Color-commentator: Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Dave Burns
Parker Kligerman
Marty Snider
Kelli Stavast

Radio

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MRN covered the radio call for the race, which was simulcast on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio.

MRN
Booth announcers Turn announcers Pit reporters
Lead announcer: Joe Moore
Announcer: Jeff Striegle
Announcer: Rusty Wallace
Backstretch: Dave Moody Alex Hayden
Winston Kelley
Steve Post
Kim Coon

Standings after the race

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References

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  1. ^ "2018 schedule". Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. May 5, 2017. Archived from the original on December 24, 2017. Retrieved September 17, 2018.
  2. ^ "Martinsville Speedway". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group, LLC. January 3, 2013. Archived from the original on April 25, 2017. Retrieved September 17, 2018.
  3. ^ "Entry List". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. October 23, 2018. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
  4. ^ "First Practice Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. October 27, 2018. Retrieved October 27, 2018.
  5. ^ "Final Practice Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. October 27, 2018. Retrieved October 27, 2018.
  6. ^ "Starting Lineup". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. October 27, 2018. Retrieved October 27, 2018.
  7. ^ "First Data 500 Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. October 28, 2018. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
  8. ^ "Points standings" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. October 29, 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 23, 2018. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
  9. ^ "Manufacturer standings" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. October 29, 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 23, 2018. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
  10. ^ "Martinsville final TV ratings". Jayski's Silly Season Site. ESPN. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
  11. ^ Utter, Jim (October 27, 2018). "Brad Keselowski tops two playoffs drivers in Saturday's first practice". Motorsport.com. Ridgeway, Virginia: Motorsport Network. Retrieved October 27, 2018.
  12. ^ Utter, Jim (October 27, 2018). "Ryan Newman fastest in final practice at Martinsville". Motorsport.com. Ridgeway, Virginia: Motorsport Network. Retrieved October 27, 2018.
  13. ^ "Kyle Busch to lead next round of NASCAR's playoffs". Associated Press. Ridgeway, Virginia: AP Sports. Associated Press. October 27, 2018. Archived from the original on October 28, 2018. Retrieved October 27, 2018.


Previous race:
2018 Hollywood Casino 400
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series
2018 season
Next race:
2018 AAA Texas 500